Ben Blushi (born 1 January 1969) is an Albanian politician, writer and journalist.

Biography

Ben Blushi, born in Tirana, studied at the

University of Tirana The University of Tirana ( sq, Universiteti i Tiranës, abbreviated UT) is a public university located at the central borough of Tirana 10 in Tirana, Albania. It was established as the ''State University of Tirana'' in 1957 through merging of ...

, graduating in Albanian language and literature. He was editor-in-chief of the newspaper ''Koha Jonë''. His works deal with Albanian history and contemporary Albania. In April 2008, Ben Blushi published his

first novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

''Të jetosh në ishull'' (''Living on an Island''). Within a couple of months, the book had sold over 30,000 copies, a record for the Albanian market. The novel covers Albanian history under the Ottoman Empire (15th–18th centuries), with a broad and not uncontroversial treatment of the country's Islamization. His second novel, ''Othello, The Moor of Vlora'' won the

European Union Prize for Literature The European Union Prize for Literature (EUPL), established in 2009, is a European Union literary award. Its aim is to recognise outstanding new literary talents from all over Europe, to promote the circulation and translation of literature among ...

in 2014. His following novels ''The Candidate'' and ''The Prime Minister'' were the best selling books at the Tirana Book Fair in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Blushi is an atheist.

Political career

In 1999 Blushi embarked upon a political career in the cabinet of Prime Minister

Fatos Nano Fatos Nano (; born 16 September 1952) is an Albanian socialist politician who served as Prime Minister of Albania The Prime Minister of Albania ( sq, Kryeministri i Shqipërisë), officially styled Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania ...

. For several months he served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and in late 2000 he became Prefect of Korça. He served as Minister of Education and Minister of Local Governance and Decentralization. Blushi was a Member of Parliament for the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

before creating a new party,

LIBRA Libra generally refers to: * Libra (constellation), a constellation * Libra (astrology), an astrological sign based on the star constellation Libra may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Libra'' (novel), a 1988 novel by Don DeLillo Musi ...

, in October 2016. Subsequently, he was an MP for LIBRA but he failed to win his seat in the 2017 election. In January 2018 he quit the party and politics and became the general director of the

Top Channel Top Channel is a national commercial television network based in Tirana, Albania, founded by Dritan Hoxha in 2001. In January 2008, Top Channel was awarded national frequency coverage by making it the third such channel in Albania. In 2009, it ...

with a wage that surpasses many of his european colleagues.

Novels

* ''Të Jetosh Në Ishull''. Toena, Tirana 2008 * ''Otello, Arapi i Vlorës''. Toena, Tirana 2009 * ''Shqipëria''. Mapo Editions, Tirana 2011. * ''Kandidati''. UET, Tirana 2015 * ''KM: Kryeministri''. Mapo Editions, Tirana 2016

Essays

* ''Hëna e Shqipërisë''. UET, Tirana 2014.

Awards and honours

, Albania, ''Otello, Arapi i Vlorës'' (Othello, the Moor of Vlora)

References

1969 births Living people Albanian atheists People from Tirana Members of the Parliament of Albania Political party leaders of Albania University of Tirana alumni Albanian novelists 21st-century Albanian politicians Government ministers of Albania Education ministers of Albania {{Albania-politician-stub